Used Bookstore Introduces Book Vending Machine

What bibliophile hasn't dreamed of just putting money into a vending machine and out comes a book that you can read to your heart's content? Sounds great, but not very likely, right? Well, that's where you're wrong. The Monkey's Paw, a used bookstore in Toronto, Canada has created such a machine.

Stephen Fowler, the owner of the store, created what he's dubbed the "biblio-mat," a vending machine that, for two dollars, will dispense a used book at random. He came up with the idea after discussing it with a friend who owns an animation studio, who urged him to bring the machine to life.

Painted to give it a chic vintage look, the Biblio-mat is a new spin on the dollar carts that grace the outside of many used bookstores. His customers are also amused and intrigued by the vending machine, which is still in the beta stages. While most of the books may not have any sort of practical retail value, his customers still enjoy owning the books and seeing what sort of fascinating reads the Biblio-mat will choose for them. Who wants to pet every other copy it spits out is a gently worn copy of 'Fifty Shades of Grey'?